There is always laughter in life Understanding life and why things happen is impossible. Life is like a game, accepting the things that life throws at us is the challenge. For some, giving up is the key to life. For others, it is important to see the bright side of life and continue living. Nick Hornby tackles very serious subjects in his novels Slam and A Long Way Down. However, he approaches the topics in a more comedic way, which creates a more engaging and effective story. In both novels, Hornby addresses serious issues in today's society. While there are lessons to be learned on these issues, he takes a fun approach to telling the story. In Slam, several problems arise with a 16 year old boy. The first big problem he talks about is teenage pregnancy: “It happened that night, I know it. I never said anything to Alicia, but it was my fault” (Hornby, Slam 61). Sam made the same mistake his mother made at his age. Hornby manages to make the subject relatively calm and ironic for the reader: “Not so bad, is it? It's a mistake, that's all. (Hornby, Slam 62). Although it may have been a mistake; it's bad. Sam is described by Hornby as a calm but frustrated character. By having a frustrated character, he is able to blend humor into Sam's frustration: "It seems to me that if you never wear a condom, then you should have triplets or quintuplets" (Hornby, Slam 62). Hornby uses understatement and humor in Squires 2 to emphasize this point and make the reader understand the problem while making it as funny as possible. This problem leads to others in Sam's life. Sam began to realize how scared he was... middle of paper ......t draws the reader in. His writing style is easily understandable and is not intended to preach, but to teach. Having relationships with the characters in his novels will help someone who may be facing these issues. Hornby succeeds in tackling serious issues in a comedic way, resulting in an engaging novel. Works Cited Hornby, Nick. A long way down. New York: Riverhead Books, 2005. Print.---. Slam. New York: Riverhead Books, 2007. Print. Tuscan, Richard. “Serious comedy and the opposite.” Serious comedy. Richard Toscan, 2009. Internet. May 31. 2010..Hansen, Liane and Nick Hornby. "Music inspires 'high fidelity' author's new novel." NPR. PBS, 2010.Web. May 24 2010..